Maker's Mark Star Hill Farm 2026 American Wheat Whisky Cask Strength 115.4 Proof 700ml

Margie and Bill Samuels burned the Samuels family's 170-year-old bourbon recipe in their kitchen oven in 1953 and started over. What they were looking for was something specific: a softness and sweetness that the rye-based bourbons of the era didn't produce. Their solution was soft red winter wheat in place of rye — a decision that created the Maker's Mark house style and hasn't been reconsidered since. For seventy years, that mash bill has not changed.

Star Hill Farm Whisky is the first change. The first new mash bill in seventy years. Not a bourbon — the wheat content is too high for bourbon classification under US law. An American wheat whisky: two distinct mash bills, one composed entirely of malted wheat, another of 70% wheat and 30% malted barley, blended to a final composition of 27% wheat, 62% malted wheat, and 11% malted barley. The inaugural 2025 release featured the soft red winter wheat that Maker's Mark has always grown — the signature grain. The 2026 release builds on that foundation and layers in two additional wheat varieties: hard red wheat, adding fruity brightness and lingering spice; and hard white wheat, adding silky texture and vibrant complexity. Three wheats. Seventy years in the making.

Named World's Best Wheat Whisky 2026. The second annual release, a balanced blend of seven and eight-year whiskies bottled at cask strength. Dr. Blake Layfield's own description: "It opens with aromas of molasses, fig and delicate baking spices, followed by notes of zesty citrus, ripe pear and buttery shortbread, and lingers with a soft cinnamon finish." Breaking Bourbon's full review found fresh strawberries, honeyed apricot, peach, caramel, and marmalade on the nose — chocolate-covered cherry, vanilla, honey, ginger, dough, and lemon on the palate — dark chocolate, spicy cinnamon, fig, pecan, nutmeg, and allspice on the finish. "More vibrant, varied, and expressive overall" than the 2025. The 2026 is not a step back. It is a step into greater complexity.

Origins & Craftsmanship

Maker's Mark Distillery has occupied Star Hill Farm in Loretto, Marion County, Kentucky since 1953 — the historic property that Bill and Margie Samuels purchased when they left the family's previous distilling operations to build something entirely new. The distillery building, the grain storage, the aging warehouses, and the bottling facility all exist on this property — one of the most completely integrated and the most specifically single-estate bourbon operations in Kentucky. The same property now carries Estate Whiskey certification, Regenified certification for regenerative agriculture, and B Corp certification — Maker's Mark's foundational commitment to sustainability extended into the specific sourcing of the grain that makes Star Hill Farm Whisky the most directly estate-rooted and the most specifically land-connected whisky the brand has ever produced.

Rob Samuels — eighth-generation whisky maker and Managing Director of Maker's Mark — described the founding spirit of Star Hill Farm Whisky directly: "My grandparents built Maker's Mark on the belief that when we invest in the land, it gives back in flavor. Star Hill Farm Whisky extends that vision by embracing ingredients sourced from regenerative agriculture."

The 2026 production protocol represents a specifically more complex iteration of the inaugural release. Where the 2025 used soft red winter wheat throughout, the 2026 adds hard red and hard white wheat — varieties that require different handling, different fermentation profiles, and different blending approaches to integrate with the malted wheat and malted barley components. Dr. Blake Layfield, Maker's Mark Master Distiller, oversaw the blending of seven and eight-year whiskies from the two distinct mash bills into the final expression — the seven-year component contributing the vibrancy and fruit expressiveness that Breaking Bourbon most specifically noticed, and the eight-year adding the depth and structure that distinguishes the 2026 from the more immediately accessible 2025. Bottled at cask strength — 115.4 proof / 57.7% ABV — uncut, with no water reduction. Estate Whiskey certified: every grain grown on or near Star Hill Farm.

The three wheat varieties and their specific contributions:
Soft Red Winter Wheat — the Maker's Mark signature grain, providing the rich sweetness, cinnamon, and fig notes that have defined the brand for seventy years.
Hard White Wheat — a harder, denser variety producing silky texture and vibrant complexity beyond what soft red winter wheat alone develops.
Heirloom Hard Red Wheat — the most specifically unusual and the most specifically aromatic variety, contributing fruity brightness and lingering spice that neither of the other wheats produces.

Critics Reviews

World Whisky Awards 2026 — World's Best Wheat Whisky

Breaking Bourbon (2026 review — May 2026):
"The 2026 edition is more vibrant, varied, and expressive overall. Its aroma is flushed with fresh strawberries, honeyed apricot, peach, caramel, marmalade, and sweet oak — it works exceptionally well. The palate dishes up chocolate-covered cherry, vanilla, honey, ginger, dough, and a touch of lemon, and is all-around light in body and more limber. The finish quickly changes to dark chocolate and spicy cinnamon, with fig, pecan, nutmeg, and allspice rounding it out."

Drinkhacker (2026 review):
"The nose is heavy with brown sugar, honey, and a touch of the barrel — more toasty than charred. A pinch of pepper brightens things up, then some lemon curd."

Maker's Mark / Dr. Blake Layfield official (2026):
"The 2026 release is a balanced blend of seven and eight-year whiskies bottled at cask strength, evolving from first sip to finish. It opens with aromas of molasses, fig and delicate baking spices, followed by notes of zesty citrus, ripe pear and buttery shortbread, and lingers with a soft cinnamon finish."

Maker's Mark official grain characterization:
"Soft Red Winter Wheat: Rich sweetness with cinnamon and fig notes. Hard White Wheat: Silky texture with vibrant complexity. Heirloom Hard Red: Fruity brightness with lingering spice."

Rob Samuels, 8th Generation Managing Director:
"My grandparents built Maker's Mark on the belief that when we invest in the land, it gives back in flavor. Star Hill Farm Whisky extends that vision by embracing ingredients sourced from regenerative agriculture."

vs. 2025 release (Breaking Bourbon):
"The 2025 edition features more heavy dark raspberry, barrel char, and blackberry notes — more astringent and drier-tasting. The 2026 edition is more vibrant, varied, and expressive overall."

Tasting Profile

Nose
Warm amber — seven and eight years of Kentucky cask strength maturation producing a color of genuine richness and warmth. The nose opens with the most immediately distinctive and the most specifically three-wheat-variety quality that makes the 2026 different from every prior Maker's Mark expression: fresh strawberries lead with the most vivid and the most memorably summery primary fruit note — the heirloom hard red wheat's "fruity brightness" most directly apparent in the very first impression. Honeyed apricot follows with warm stone fruit sweetness. Peach adds the ripest and the most generous secondary fruit character. Caramel adds warmth and sweetness. Marmalade adds the most complex citrus-fruit secondary depth. Sweet oak from the seven and eight-year maturation adds the most specifically wood-integrated and the most gently structural secondary quality. Molasses and fig add the darker and the most specifically Maker's Mark-house-characteristic secondary aromatics — the soft red winter wheat's "rich sweetness with cinnamon and fig" contribution most enduringly present beneath the new wheat varieties' brighter expression. Brown sugar, honey, and a gentle toasty barrel note add warmth. Delicate baking spices thread through.

Palate
Light in body, vibrant, and limber — Breaking Bourbon's most specifically unusual and the most accurately observed palate characterization for a cask-strength whisky at 115.4 proof. The all-wheat mash bill's most immediately distinctive quality is most apparent here: the absence of the corn-heavy weight that bourbon carries, replaced by a lighter, more specifically grain-pure character whose fruit expressiveness and textural silkiness comes from the hard white wheat's specific contribution. Chocolate-covered cherry leads the palate with the most indulgent and the most vividly dark-fruit combination available in any wheat whisky. Vanilla adds warm sweetness. Honey adds the most natural and the most specifically grain-sourced sweetness. Ginger adds the most exotic and the most building warm spice note. Dough adds the most specifically baked-grain and the most authentically wheat-forward secondary character. Zesty citrus and ripe pear — from the official Layfield tasting note — carry the palate's most refreshing and the most specifically orchard-fruit forward qualities. Buttery shortbread adds the most recognizably Maker's Mark-style and the most satisfying secondary baked quality. The cask strength warmth builds genuinely and honestly at 115.4 proof — present, warming, and entirely appropriate for a seven-to-eight-year whisky of this grain complexity.

Finish
Dark chocolate and spicy cinnamon lead the transformation at the close — Breaking Bourbon's most specific and the most dramatically accurate finish characterization, the finish "quickly changing" from the palate's vibrant fruit into something darker and more specifically spiced. Fig returns from the nose to add the most warm and the most specifically Maker's Mark-heritage secondary note. Pecan adds the most specifically American and the most satisfying nutty quality. Nutmeg and allspice add the most warm and the most broadly baking-spice-adjacent finish complexity. Soft cinnamon from Layfield's official note provides the most lingering and the most specifically warm final character. Rich sweetness and the cask strength's enduring warmth persist at the very close.

Quick Overview

Serving & Occasion

Neat at room temperature — allow 10 to 15 minutes of air at 115.4 proof for the strawberry, apricot, and fig aromatics to fully develop. A few drops of water specifically transforms this whisky: the fruit-forward and the grain-pure character of the all-wheat mash bill opens considerably with minimal dilution, the citrus and peach notes becoming more vivid and the ginger spice becoming more pronounced. Excellent alongside fruit-based desserts, shortbread, or dark chocolate — the most direct flavor mirrors in any pairing for a World's Best Wheat Whisky.